Winkfield St Mary's CofE Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve teaching so that it is consistently good or better by ensuring that:
  • teachers’ expectations of all pupils, and especially the most able, are consistently high teachers routinely check pupils’ understanding during lessons and adapt teaching accordingly
  • pupils are systematically supported to understand how to improve their work.
• Ensure that leaders at all levels, including governors, routinely use assessment information to evaluate the impact of actions on improving the quality of teaching and pupil progress.
• Accelerate pupils’ progress from their starting points in writing across the school, particularly for boys and pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• Since the previous inspection the school has been through a great many leadership changes. This has made it difficult to embed actions to drive the school forward. Leaders have not improved teaching quickly enough to ensure the consistently high level of challenge needed by pupils to develop their understanding at greater depth, particularly in writing.
• Some leaders do not use progress information effectively to help them target specific actions to support groups whose progress is not as strong as it should be, for example pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and the progress of boys in writing.
• The use of additional funding devolved to the school to support disadvantaged pupils has not been evaluated thoroughly to ensure that it meets the needs of these pupils. Leaders are now putting into place a more rigorous review of the impact of this funding on outcomes for pupils to ensure that it helps pupils make progress across all areas of learning.
• The new headteacher has quickly identified the right priorities for the school. She is highly skilled at prioritising the things that need to be in place to enable the school to continue to improve. Parents and staff value her commitment, openness and clarity. They are positive about the considerable impact she has already had on the school.
• The new leadership team have appropriate action plans for improvement in place. They are leading staff training and supporting staff to develop their skills where needed. Leaders are beginning to check the effectiveness of these actions, but do not yet use the results of their checks on teaching and learning well enough to help them to understand which actions have had the best results and what the next steps need to be.
• The new assessment information system has been used to set appropriately ambitious targets for all staff as part of their performance management review. Newly qualified staff are benefiting from regular mentoring support and the local authority induction process, which includes working in small groups with other local newly qualified teachers.
• Staff value the training and support that has been provided by the leadership team, the local authority and other advisers. They are putting the advice into practice and this is starting to have effect on raising the quality of teaching and provision.
• Sports premium funding is used effectively to support engagement and participation in a wide range of sporting activities, both within the school day and in the wide range of clubs on offer.
• Leaders ensure that there are useful links between the subjects pupils study. The new national standards are now met in the programmes of study teachers and leaders have designed. Where these links are working well, pupils are excited by their learning and inspired to make and build on subject connections. For example, a recent topic in which pupils made their own chocolate and wrote letters to Willy Wonka was a particular favourite. However, this is not yet evident across all year groups and curriculum areas.
• There is a wide range of before-, after-school and lunch clubs available to pupils to extend their experience and understanding of sport, computing, languages and music. A well-attended before-school judo club showed pupils to be engaged, active, working well together and having an enormous amount of fun.
• Pupils are aware of, and have experience of, fundamental British values. The promotion of these values is reflected in displays around the school. Pupils learn about democracy through voting for their school council representative. Their spirituality is developed through assemblies and through music and dance. Pupils talk readily about how they include and value each other.
• Opportunities to reflect on a range of belief systems are built into the curriculum. Recent work on the Mayan civilisation encouraged pupils to think about the types of gods that were important to people.
• Community life is highly valued by the school and by parents. A concert for senior citizens included many people who had been to the school themselves, as had their children. In this way pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain, both in their surrounding community and in wider society.

Governance of the school

• Governance requires improvement because governors have not done enough to challenge leaders to improve the school since the last inspection. They have been through a period of change and some turbulence as they strove to secure the right leadership for the school. Governors have rightly restructured the way they are working so that they can be more effective in holding leaders to account.
• Governors share a high ambition for the school with the new headteacher. Together they are beginning to use a wider range of appropriate information to ask more searching questions to help ensure that all groups of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, are making good progress.
• Governors have completed a skills audit and have between them a strong mix of qualities to ensure that the school meets its financial and safeguarding responsibilities.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• All the required checks for employment of staff are in place and regularly updated. Governors check the records regularly.
• Training for staff has been completed in child protection and extremism. It is regularly reviewed.
• There is a culture of vigilance across the school that ensures that pupil safety is a priority. Staff know the systems to follow if concerns are identified.
• The headteacher is involved in multi-agency meetings for vulnerable pupils and their families. She diligently challenges other professionals and follows up on concerns. A family support worker offers a range of bespoke support to families.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Teachers do not always have high-enough expectations of what pupils can achieve. Teaching does not stretch pupils, particularly the most able, even though many are keen to be challenged. This lack of challenge prevents pupils developing their knowledge and understanding to a greater depth.
• Teachers do not check pupils’ understanding carefully enough. Some pupils are expected to work through tasks that they can already do before getting to more challenging tasks. This means that they are not working at the right level for their ability and do not progress as quickly as they could. Teachers do not pick up others’ misunderstandings quickly enough to help them.
• Pupils are not consistently given opportunities to improve their work following feedback, as set out in the school’s assessment policy. This means that they make less progress than they might as they are not confident about what steps to take to improve their work.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are not given the support they need to help them to make progress in writing.
• Pupils enjoy writing for a range of purposes at length across subject areas. However, the school’s policies for supporting writing and providing feedback to pupils are not consistently applied. This means some pupils lack clarity about how to plan and develop their writing or do not use the tips they are given to improve their work. Consequently, progress in writing is hampered for some pupils, particularly boys, who do not make as much progress as girls.
• Pupils enjoy reading. They read regularly at home and school and are taught the skills that they need to help them to tackle unfamiliar words and develop their understanding. They have a rich reading diet and talk animatedly about authors and books that they enjoy. Appropriate support helps pupils who struggle to acquire basic skills.
• Teachers now plan more effectively for mathematics using new resources and a calculations policy to help structure teaching. Teaching has a growing focus on pupils explaining their mathematical reasoning. When this happens, teachers are able to identify where pupils are confused and help them develop understanding. However, this does not yet happen consistently across the school.
• Teaching is effective for those pupils who need extra support in mathematics. For example, a group of Year 5 pupils were helped to develop their understanding of the rounding of numbers through teaching which identified precisely what they could do. Pupils then rounded numbers by units, tens, hundreds and thousands, building on their knowledge as they gained confidence.
• Teaching assistants are generally well used in classes. They know the pupils well and use a range of strategies to help break learning down into small steps. Relationships with pupils are nurturing and encouraging.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils enjoy school. One parent commented that her children ‘wake every morning looking forward to the day ahead’. Staff and pupils model a high degree of mutual respect. The warmth of these relationships is clearly evident across the school and supports pupils in both their academic and pastoral development. The school is a happy place.
• Leaders use a range of approaches well to support pupils who experience difficulties. Logs are kept in classrooms so that patterns of behaviour can be identified and supported appropriately.
• Pupils are clear that bullying is rare. If it does occur, they are confident in reporting problems to an adult and that it will be resolved. A recent anti-bullying week encouraged pupils to understand how to use ‘Power for Good’.
• Pupils feel safe at school. Parents agree that their children are safe and well cared for.
• Pupils are aware of how to stay safe online. E-safety guidelines are displayed clearly in the computer suite and pupils are helped to remember having seen cartoons on ‘cyber safety’.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils conduct themselves well throughout the day. They are polite and courteous. After assembly, for example, pupils leave in an orderly fashion. They thank those who hold open the doors, as do the staff.
• Most pupils respond quickly to instructions in lessons, ensuring disruptions to learning are minimal. They work hard and take pride in their achievements. Pupils present their work well. Occasionally, a small number of pupils lose interest in lessons. They become disengaged when the activity does not challenge or interest them.
• Some parents were concerned about play and lunchtimes. Inspectors found no reason they should be. Older pupils enjoy looking after younger ones on the playground, organising their games. Staff gently help pupils to resolve playground issues, encouraging them to reflect on how to do things better next time. Pupils are aware of rotas and routines designed to support them in safe and inclusive play.
• On the very rare occasions that pupil behaviour requires intervention from the headteacher, pupils respond immediately and these behaviours are not repeated.
• There have been no fixed-term or permanent exclusions over the past three years.
• Overall attendance is above average. Both absence and persistent absence levels are low. Attendance of the small numbers of disadvantaged pupils has been historically low, but the most recent data shows considerable improvement. The headteacher is monitoring absence of this group very closely and has taken appropriate steps to support improved attendance.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• The progress pupils make from their starting points is not as rapid as it should be in some curriculum areas. This is especially the case in writing and particularly for boys. So far this year under two thirds of the boys have so far made the progress that they should, compared with over three quarters of the girls. Leaders are aware of this and the results of the recent focus on teaching writing are starting to be seen in the work pupils are producing.
• Disadvantaged pupils’ progress remains inconsistent, including for the most able disadvantaged pupils. Their progress in reading has improved and is now good. However, disadvantaged pupils do not make consistent progress across the school in writing and mathematics.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are not making rapid enough progress from their starting points.
• Pupils enter school with skills that are typically better than expected for their age. Overall, they continue to attain well compared with other pupils nationally as they move through the school. In 2016, as in previous years, the proportion of pupils reaching the required standard in phonics was above the national level. At the end of key stage 1 and key stage 2, attainment was at least in line with national figures in reading, writing and mathematics.
• However, pupils’ rates of progress are not consistently strong from different starting points for some groups of pupils or across subjects. The most able pupils do not develop the greater depth of knowledge understanding and skills that they could, particularly in writing.
• Pupils are making good progress in reading from their starting points. Systematic and regular teaching of phonics results in accelerated progress. Pupils move rapidly through stages of learning and apply their knowledge to tackling new words.
• Recent changes in mathematics teaching are starting to accelerate progress in most year groups. As a result, there are greater numbers of pupils developing a depth of understanding.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• Staff are starting to build a picture of each child’s learning over time. However, their observations of what children know and can do are not yet linked well enough to what children need to learn next. As a result, staff do not always provide experiences or ask questions that extend children’s knowledge and understanding enough in group work or through play-based experiences. This means that progress is not as rapid as it otherwise might be.
• Staff support children to settle in to school life effectively. They help to ensure that children are happy and enjoy an exciting array of learning experiences, both inside and outdoors.
• Leaders have engaged well with the support provided by an early years adviser to develop the learning areas both inside and outside. The new learning environment is attractive and engaging. Staff ensure that there are appropriate resources that help children develop their thinking and understanding, particularly when learning through their play. They encourage children to explore and develop their confidence.
• Staff foster an enjoyment of learning. Following a recent trip to the theatre to see ‘The Elves and the Shoemaker’, children happily engaged in hunting for elves and making equipment for them.
• Phonics is taught well using clearly understood routines and games which children participate in with enjoyment and exuberance.
• Children get along well together. They are kind to each other and enjoy sharing their play and resources.
• Children are well cared for and have developed warm and trusting relationships with staff. They are confident in themselves as learners and happy to contribute their ideas and experiences. This helps prepare them for transition to Year 1.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority 109994 Bracknell Forest Inspection number 10019863 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Primary Maintained 5 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 206 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Julian Brecknock/Dave Phillips Julia Evans 01344 882422 www.wsmschool.org secretary@office.stmarys.bracknell-forest.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 19–20 November 2014

Information about this school

• Winkfield St Mary’s is a smaller-than-average primary school.
• Most pupils are White British and nearly all speak English as their first language.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.
• Few pupils are disadvantaged.
• The percentage of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is about the same as seen nationally. The proportion with an education, health and care plan or statement of special educational needs is below average.
• The headteacher joined the school in September 2016.
• The school does not meet requirements on the publication of information on its website. Information about the impact of pupil premium and sports funding is not kept up to date and does not include the detail needed.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed 13 lessons. Some of these were observed jointly with leaders.
• Inspectors visited before-school clubs and assemblies. They had meetings with leaders and a range of other staff, pupils, governors, a local authority adviser and an early years adviser.
• Inspectors looked at the work of pupils in their exercise books with school leaders.
• A wide range of documentation was reviewed, including: the school’s self-evaluation and improvement plans; governor minutes; website and policies; case studies; the single central record; monitoring records and pupil performance information.
• Inspectors considered 60 responses to Parent View, including 54 free-text responses, talked with parents on the telephone and at the school gate, and took account of 17 staff survey responses.
• Discussions with pupils took place in classrooms, meetings and on the playground.

Inspection team

Deborah Gordon, lead inspector Emma Palastanga

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector